There is a dearth of research on help-seeking behaviors of intimate partner violence (IPV) victims, especially within developing nations. The current study uses the nationally representative population-based Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) of 31 nations to address this gap in the literature. Specifically, the study (a) assesses the extent to which IPV victims sought help in developing nations, (b) investigates from whom IPV victims sought help, and (c) evaluates individual and national factors that influence the likelihood of help seeking among IPV victims in developing nations. Given the hierarchical structure of the data, multilevel modeling techniques are used (individual level N = 65,530; national level N = 31). Descriptive findings revealed 34.88% of IPV victims engaged in help-seeking behaviors and the majority of victims who sought help reached out to family members (63.10%). Few IPV victims (3.24%) sought help from formal institutions. Results from the hierarchical generalized linear regression models indicated the severity of abuse, attitudes toward IPV, and indicators of empowerment all affected the likelihood of help seeking. National-level factors, including whether the nation had a law against IPV, were not significant. While providing formal services is important, policies designed to help IPV victims must recognize and address cultural barriers that may inhibit help-seeking behaviors. Because the majority of IPV victims sought help from informal support networks, it is important that individuals in these extended networks receive information about gendered norms and IPV so they can extend help and respond appropriately to family and friends.

The current study evaluates the impact of prior controlling behavior and physical abuse on indirect abuse during the process of separation. The sample includes women in the New York City family court system from 2002 to 2005 who had at least one child with the male she was obtaining an order of protection against. Stepwise logistic regression was used to determine the impact of prior physical abuse and controlling behavior on if the abusive partner told lies to the children, kept the children longer or contacted the woman's family or friends over the follow-up period. Women experienced a decline in the occurrence of physical abuse but did not experience the same decline in controlling behaviors over the follow-up period. Level of education and employment status of the couple may be more appropriate predictors of later indirect abuse over the process of separation than prior physical abuse and controlling behavior.

This study examines the applicability of theoretically-relevant routine activity variables to understand the risk of sexual victimization among college students. Analyses assess if routine activity-related variables have similar explanatory power for rape and sexual assault. Indicators of “proximity to motivated offenders” and “exposure to crime” were associated with rape. Indicators related to “proximity to motivated offenders,” “exposure to crime,” and “target attractiveness” were associated with sexual assault. Indicators capturing “guardianship” were not associated with either rape or sexual assault. Theoretical implications and directions for future research are discussed. Specifically, it is possible to theory-test using campus climate survey instruments.

The study evaluated if individual-and national-level factors influence intimate partner violence (IPV) attitudes. Using Demographic and Health Surveys' data, multilevel modeling was used to analyze 506,935 females nested in 41 nations. The results indicated that the respondents in nations with higher levels of gender inequality, measured by the Social Institutions and Gender Index, were more likely to agree a husband is justified to abuse his wife when she argues with him. National-level attitudes toward IPV and decision making at the individual level were significant predictors of IPV attitudes. The presence of another female while the survey was administered and differences across nations in question wording significantly affected IPV attitudes. The results confirm that both individual-and national-level factors shape individual IPV attitudes. National policies and programming should address gender inequality and patriarchal attitudes.